What is a Facebook Carousel Ad: Benefits and Uses

The power of social media platforms like Facebook is well-established. But that also means that your competition is also using these powerful platforms to gain momentum with their businesses. So, what can you do better to make you stand out from the crowd?

Have you tried using a Facebook carousel ad? If the answer is no, then this article is for you. This article can also serve as a carousel Facebook ads guide if the answer is yes. Read on to find out how to leverage Facebook marketing using a Facebook carousel ad and how it can help you reach your target audiences and generate traction for your brand.

What is a Facebook Carousel Ad?

To get to the question of how to do Facebook carousel ads, it is important to understand first what a Facebook carousel ad is. It is essentially a format that allows users across Facebook and Instagram to highlight three to five images, texts, and Calls to Actions (CTAs), in one single ad unit. You may even feature videos or moving images in the unit. A Facebook carousel ad works across Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, and Audience Network.

Looking at the picture above, you will notice how each card in the unit displays a different image and presents the user with separate CTAs (or the same CTA repeated in each card). It is probably the most significant advantage of these ads on Facebook. They take your viewers to different landing pages as they click on each link. Facebook or Messenger do not offer any other ad format similar to this one.

How to Make Carousel Ads on Facebook Work for Your Business?

If you know how to create a carousel ad on Facebook, you can use it to the advantage of your business in many ways.

1. Showcase a unique product

If you have only one product to feature, your knowledge about how to use Facebook carousel ads can come in handy. You can use this medium to display your product from various angles, highlight its different aspects, and share as much information as possible through a single ad unit.

2. Feature a portfolio of products

One of the key features of a Facebook carousel ad is that you can display an array of products through a single ad. It means you don’t have to have separate ad budgets for different products, and you can ensure that your viewers visit the specific landing page for a particular product.

3. Talk about your services

You can also make carousel ads on Facebook to discuss your services. Using multiple cards, talk about what sets your services apart from others and why customers should use them.

4. Demonstrate usage

You may also create Facebook carousel ads to demonstrate using a product or service. You can insert images or videos with instructions on usage that are easy to understand.

5. Customer testimonials

You can also use a Facebook carousel ad to showcase customer stories and testimonials about your brand. It can be a great marketing tactic to attract new customers and retain the existing ones.

The broader objectives met through carousel ads include:

● Increasing website traffic

● Increase reach

● Build brand awareness

● Promote catalog sales

● Generate conversions and store traffic

● Increase video views

● Elicit event responses

How to Create Facebook Carousel Ads?

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It is a straightforward process – how to create Facebook carousel ads. There are two broad ways to complete this task:

1. From your own Facebook page

To create a Facebook carousel ad from your own Facebook page, go to your brand page and click “Promote” in the top right corner. You will then get an option that says, “Promote your website” click on that. It will take you to the Ads window. On that page, you will find an “Images” section. Choose the “+” option to add multiple cards to your carousel when you click on that. Here, you can choose the number of cards between 3 and 5.

You will have to add an image and headline to each card. Once the design of each card is out of the way, fill out the information under Audience, Budget, and Duration, and then just click on “Promote”. That’s it. Your Facebook carousel ad is now live!

2. Through the Adverts Manager

The first step here is to go to the Facebook Adverts Manager page and click “Create Advert”. Remember to pick the goal of the advert – “Send people to your website”, “Get installs on your app”, or “Increase conversions on your website”. Also, add the budget and audience. You can then start creating the advert. You have to select “Add multiple images in one advert” to begin adding the cards. The rest of the process is similar to the first option.

Facebook Carousel Ad Specs

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Having gained a basic understanding of Facebook carousel ads and how to make them work for your business, we will now discuss some technical specifications and design recommendations. Facebook itself advocates it.

1. You have to add a minimum of 2 cards to your carousel, while the maximum number is 10.
2. The only exception to the above is dynamic ads, where you can add up to 200 cards.
3. You must specify the landing page URL for each card.
4. Add a 25 to 40-character-long headline and a 20-character description.
5. The primary text should not exceed 125 characters.
6. The supported image file formats are .jpg and .png and should not exceed 30 MB in size.
7. The supported video file formats are MP4, MOV, and GIF.
8. The maximum video length in a Facebook carousel ad should not exceed 240 minutes and 4 GB. On Instagram, however, this limit is only 60 seconds.
9. The ad placements supported by Facebook carousel ads include
   1. Right column
   2. Feed
   3. Stories
   4. Messenger inbox
   5. Audience Network
   6. Search results
   7. Marketplace

How to Use Facebook Carousel Ads?

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The carousel Facebook ads guide tells you how to create one and use it in the best possible ways with these valuable tips –

1. Choose to show your best-performing ads automatically using a unique feature on Facebook. But if you want your ad cards to appear in a particular order, you can always deselect this feature.
2. Put most of your efforts into designing the first card of the carousel. If this is compelling, it will catch viewers’ eyes and make them want to see the rest.
3. Use a Facebook carousel ad to weave a story and not just promote products. The headlines of each card should be such that the viewer would want to read through the following sections.
4. Highlight your most-loved products and not just any product from your brand.
5. While the images and videos are the most attractive features of a carousel, do not forget to write a compelling copy.

Key Takeaways

Here is a quick summary of what has just been captured about a Facebook carousel ad

● Featuring more than one image in one ad unit, a Facebook carousel ad lets you promote your brand on Facebook and Instagram.

● You can use a Facebook carousel ad to promote a single product or a range of products and services, demonstrate their application, and tell customer stories.

● You can use your own Facebook page or the Facebook Adverts Manager to create a carousel ad on Facebook.

● You can add 2 to 10 images, videos, or GIFs in a single ad unit, considering the enlisted technical specifications.

● The best way to leverage Facebook carousel ads is to highlight your best image and write a compelling copy in the unit.

● It is mandatory to add the URLs of landing pages on each carousel card.

Experts recommend that you start using the Facebook carousel ad if you still haven’t used it. And see how it can speed up your business through innovative marketing practices and digital reach.

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